As someone with a generally inquisitive mind, I work hard to unravel the mysteries of the universe, for no reason other than my own satisfaction. And yet there are still phenomena whose understanding eludes me: string theory, the Bermuda Triangle, the link between gravity and space-time, and of (more...)

I don't know what it is boys, but there's something about an attractive, successful older man that set's a girl's heart a-racing. So, for example, the likes of Terry Wogan may be happily married, or Stephen Fry happily gay, but still we swoon when those deep baritone voices wash over us. Perhaps (more...)

The modern footballer is, as we all know, a mass of clichés, from his 'sick as a parrot' and his 'game of two halves' to his 'all credit to the opposition' and 'I'm just pleased for the team'. And you can always rely on an 'at the end of the day.' You're guaranteed to get at least one of (more...)

Last night I watched a programme on TV which promised to take me inside the crocodile. I rather foolishly assumed this meant inside the life of the crocodile, with new insights into its habits and lifecycle. In the event, the programme literally went inside the crocodile, courtesy of a rather gory (more...)

Note to self: must think before speaking. This was a little aide memoire I jotted down during a recent meeting of your hard working Industrial Technology team, whilst the others in the group were rolling around the floor laughing. I like to promote myself as an ideas man. What this high brow concept (more...)

Being something of a Red Dwarf fan (I'm thinking of the TV series, here, although I do find astronomy fascinating), I tend to lose track of what's a real quote and what has been entirely made up to entertain a science fiction loving demographic. Arnold Rimmer definitely said it, but I'm pretty sure (more...)

Which camp do you stand in when it comes to wind turbines? Are you one of those who thinks they are a blot on the landscape, or do you gaze in awe at them as things of beauty? Personally, I fall into the latter group. I love the way they emerge from the landscape, standing tall and powerful over (more...)

It's funny how people have perceptions of jobs and sectors that are so far off the mark that you'd struggle to measure it with existing technology. Consider, for example, banking and manufacturing. Ask your average punter to conjure up a picture of a city trader, and he'll picture a wheeler-dealer (more...)

At a conference I attended recently, someone asked what the panel thought was the best approach to take to navigate through these tough times. The answer came back in the form of another question. Imagine you're out at sea when you hear news of a storm coming in. What do you do? Head back for home (more...)

On a bleak, cold February day, there's nothing sets you up for busy afternoon quite like a wholesome, nine-vegetable winter soup. I like mine good and chunky with gargantuan lumps of carrot, celery, parsnip and potato, with flavours of tomato and onion, and with a splash of white wine for added (more...)